Chief Keef
Chicago rapper from Parkway Gardens whose 2012 hits “I Don’t Like” and “Love Sosa” carried drill music from the South Side to a national audience and a major-label deal.
Washington Park upbringing
Keith Farrelle Cozart was born in Chicago on August 15, 1995, and was raised largely by his grandmother in the Parkway Garden Homes complex in the Washington Park neighborhood of the South Side. He attended Dyett High School before leaving as a freshman, and he was already recording as a teenager, issuing the mixtape “UF Overload” in 2009 and following it in 2011 with “The Glory Road” and “Bang,” which built a local following.
Drill goes national
In March 2012 he released “I Don't Like” featuring Lil Reese, produced by Young Chop, with a video directed by DGainz. The song became a Chicago street anthem, and a Kanye West remix with Pusha T, Big Sean and Jadakiss appeared on the G.O.O.D. Music compilation “Cruel Summer.” The original reached No. 73 on the Billboard Hot 100 and later went double platinum. “Love Sosa,” also produced by Young Chop and released that October, peaked at No. 56 and was eventually certified five times platinum.
Interscope and Glo Gang
Interscope signed him in 2012, and his debut album “Finally Rich” arrived on December 18, 2012, through Glory Boyz Entertainment and Interscope, opening at No. 29 on the Billboard 200. He launched the Glo Gang imprint in January 2014, moved to Los Angeles that June and was dropped by Interscope that October. Working independently, he released “Bang 3” (2015), “Dedication” (2017), “4Nem” (2021) and “Almighty So 2” (2024), the last reaching No. 30, plus a long run of mixtapes and the Zaytoven collaboration “GloToven” (2019).
Legacy
His teenage years included repeated brushes with the law that drew heavy press coverage. Critics widely credit him with bringing drill to mainstream listeners, and his slurred, melodic delivery is often cited as an influence on a later generation of rappers.
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